Photo Envy

Sometimes, I see a blog that has the most gorgeous photos, and I wonder how they do it. Do they have that innate "eye" for getting great shots, amazing and expensive equipment, or stellar Photoshop skills? Probably, the answer is a combination of those things. My photos are nice in a generic sort of way, but they don't seem to pop the way some people's do--how do I get that pop?

I think I pass as an okay photographer, and I have a pretty good camera (Canon Digital Rebel XT). My Photoshop skills are self-taught and rudimentary, but the more I monkey with a photo, the less I can tell if I'm actually improving it or making it worse. Sigh.

Recently, at a Borders Books going-out-of-business sale, I bought a book called PhoDOGraphy for $5. It had a lot of talk about ISO, shutter speeds, grain, wide angle lens...and I realized I don't really even know how to use my camera. I have never changed any of the settings beyond the pre-programmed ones for night, action, close ups and such.

I've still got a lot to learn, but here are some of my recent attempts at being a better photographer. If I Photoshopped the image, I have placed the original photo underneath the doctored one.



This morning, both Cabana and Angie, our 16-year old cat, were on the foot of our bed, where we permanently keep a Cabana-colored blanket for this purpose. I like how both Cabana and Angie are laying in the same way, with a paw dangling off the edge. I took advantage of a fun photo opportunity, and I also doctored the photo a bit, increasing the contrast, playing around with color balance, darkening the edges, and adding a bit of texture. But the changes are almost imperceptible!



I love this close-up of Angie's little face. It was a good shot to begin with, but again, I increased contrast, darkened the edges of the photo. The changes are still subtle, but this time, I think it did improve the photo.



When I was playing tug with Cabana the other day, she looked so silly, I had to grab my camera with my free hand and take this photo. I used Photoshop to create a bit of a halo effect around Cabana.


Here's Cabana with her new friend, Whisper, a female Aussie. Cabana has had her same favorite friends for some time now, and she rarely shows much interest in playing with new dogs. But for some reason, she immediately took to Whisper. Even though you can barely see their faces, I think this photo catches their exuberance with each other. I increased the contrast on this photo, and that's about it.

In our living room, we have a window that is way high up by the ceiling. The light coming through that window sometimes creates a dramatic effect on the floor below and is a sunny spot that Cabana often likes to sit in. Cabana was standing in that sunny spot while the rest of the room was in shadow. No Photoshop was required for this one.

More attempts at better photography to come!